Body construction



Jan. 2, 1934. D, w VOLTZ 1,942,314

BODY CONSTRUCTION Filed Aug. 21, 1950 8 Sheets-Sheet 1 Jan. 2, 1934. I

D. W. VOLTZ BODY CONSTRUCTION Filed Aug. 21, 1930 8 Shegts-Sheet 2 Jan. 2, D w VOLTZ 1,942,314

BODY CONSTRUCTION lam /55. @52 5 9 A WZ 7 W7; 2 ?Mq Qinuew for r Jan. 2, 1934. D VQLTZ 1,942,314

BODY CONSTRUC T I OH Filed Aug. 21, 1930 8 Sheets-Sheet 4 I J77 1972 WEE @553 7, 4 0% Jan. 2, 1934- D. w. VOLTZ BODY CONSTRUCTION Filed Aug. 21, 1950 8 Sheets-Sheet 6 l. l P

B3 2mg Jan. 2, 1934.-

D. W. VOLTZ BODY CONSTRUCTION Filed Aug. 21, 1950 8 Sheets- Sheet 7 Jan. 2, 1934. I VQLTZ 1,942,314

BODY CONSTRUCTION Filed Aug. 21, 1930 8 Sheets-Sheet 8 26 oo 6 co ca-@o 76,6

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Patented Jan. 2, 1934 v r UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE BODY CONSTRUCTION Daniel W. Voltz, Chicago, Ill., assignor to Voltz Brothers, Inc., Chicago, Ill.,"a corporation of Illinois Application August 21, 1930. Serial No. 476,748

' 7 Claims. (crass-sol This invention relates to body constructions, be very easily and economically manufactured. and more particularly to a body construction In the accompanyingdrawings wherein selectadapted for use on trucks and the like. i ed embodiments of my invention are illustrated The method of distributing perishable produce, I Fig.1 is asideelevation showing the skeleton A such as garden vegetables, fruits, meats, and the frame of my improved body construction; 1 so like, has varied from past 'practice wherein it was Fig. 2 is a horizontal, section taken substancustomary to handle such produce in large quan-' tially on the line 2-2' on Fig. 1, showing the side tities in refrigerator railroad cars which was not walls and insulation in position; profitable for short hauls. In addition, such per- Fig. Sis a vertical transverse section taken subishables are often produced in regions not served stantially on the line 3-3 on Fig. 1 and showing 65 by'railroads and, thereforefa difficult problem the walls arranged in position;' s hasbeen involved in the marketing thereof. This j ig. 4 is a detail view'of the sill and riser con.- problem, however; has been to a great" extent struction; v 4 v solved by the use of automotive tiucks'especially Fig,5 is alsectional detailview-taken substanin regions not served by railroads. Such trucks tially on the'line 5'5 on Fig. 4.; 70

are also advantageously used in short hauls. Fig- 6 is a sectional detail .view taken sub-.- Further, it has been the custom to establish censtantially on the 1ine66 on Fig. 1,1 tral distributing points, especially in larger cities F 'ig. 7 isa sectional detail view taken substanand towns; and to distribute perishable produce tiaily on the line 7 -7 on Fig. 6;

from these central points, and this has also been 1 Fig. .8 is a sectionaldetail view taken substa'n- 75 done by the use'of automotive trucks. tially on the line 8,8 on Fig. 1;

The use of trucks, however, involves the prob- F s. 1 n 12 a e p r pe iv v ews 1 lem of providing a' suitable body, for it is neceset efingfbrackets employedin the body;

sary that refrigeration be provided for the per- ,Fig,..13 is a longitudinalvertical sectional view ishable produce, and frequently the produce to or air nodified construction of my improved bqdy; 3

be provided whenthis is done in order to supbe handled as, for example, meat, is of a nature Fig. '14. is a fragmentary horizontal, sectional that requires careful and special handling. Meat view taken substantially on the line 14 14, on

can best be handled by being suspended from Fi l c I Q suitable supports and a rigid construction must F .1 a w, s milar 0 F .,4;.showi evice as arranged in the embodiment of the 5 port the weight, which will often be of considern n i n illustrated Fi s. 13 n able proportions; Further, the manner of prog ee pe p v View ofthe bracketem viding refrigeration has also involved considerb eyedf n t a a t ow in -'15; able difficulties, but this has toe great extent 11s a ea 't n ve se s ti nal vi w.

been solved by the use of so-called Dry Ice, which t k st n i lly vthe line h g- 3; 9'0 is solid carbon dioxide. This latter, however, is an I ,L relatively expensive. It is, therefore, highly ad- 81 1 1 .se i nalidetail View taken vantageous to provide effective insulation in orstan r 9? the f 1' -v der to prevent waste of the refrigerating medium. Th i proved bedy f rming the. Su ject mat-r 4o With the foregoing in mind,'the salient obe th f v h n nded to. be mou te jects of my invention are to provide a construc- 9 e hass o t uc s or th ik w ich vary tion forbodies which may be used on trucks or o s d a y im 1 OI in yp constructhe like and which willbe so arranged that it t enend in d SDO t 0 m t and t e-1 may be expeditiously installed in position on the fore, a ra e my impr v d .bedy co u '45 truck; to provide a body construction which will that it may be used with differently C nstructed be substantial and sturdy in order that considchassis 1 a er. h l n aila minimum erable weight may be 'sus'pejndedtherein; to prom e a ratio In order h tv th s m y vide a body construction which will be effectively beattained I provide a plurality of transversely insulated in order thatekdessive use of a refrigerextending cross members which form a support- 53 ating medium will not be'necessary; to provide a ing platform, andwh eh, n ep e instance,

body construction'whichmay be formed incomembody oppositely disposed channel irons 19 and oartments; and toprovide simple interchangeable 20 that are disposed .in cooperatin pairs with brackets so that a minimum number of different the flangesthereof extended in opposite direckinds will be required in the body construction tions. Between the body portions of the chanand to otherwise arrange the body so that it may nel irons 19 and 20, wooden beams are arranged. 1 0

To certain of the cross members I secure relatively wide flat plates which may be drilled at suitable points whereby tie members may be extended therethrough to interconnect the plates and the chassis, and, as the plates will be suitably secured to the channel irons of the cross members, it is manifest that the platform may be expeditiously secured to the chassis. 'The wall portions of 'my' body construction are mounted on the platform and are supported by a suitable skeleton frame. The beams 21, (Fig. 5) arranged between the channel irons 19 and 20,'do not ex tend to the ends of the channel irons, and arranged at the ends of the beams 21 between the channel irons 19 and 20 are"b fhpketsf' enerally indicated by 22, and one of these"bracl etsisil*- lustrated in detail in Fig. 12. Each of the brackets 22 includes a plate 23and depending below this plate is a unitary substantially U-shap-ed channel 24, and unitary with the' depending channel 24 and aligned therewith is a channel 25 which extends above the plate 2'3,"the sides of the channel 25 being reduced,'"as indtcated at 2e and 27 whereby reenfor'cing pads'are formed on "the sides"o'f the channel. 'The de'pehding D0 Tt l 'e he bre etei z e r d' ext n n e ytert n f' e cheni- 'nelir'ons lg'and 20 at as h"side"of the'platfoifm. Disposed between the faces of theupper flangesof saidchann'el ir s a d the lowerface's of the plates 23,'alo ng each side 'oi' the platform, i e 1. 2 e es uieh 19 se ter 'i eth the" flanges on the"channel'irohsl9"andT2011the sills 28, nd t a s 3 ereWfi ime t e' l e, eiiten'ding through thelplates 2 3 d 11 123 into th beams 21, llustr d 3 3 i e h h -e d'* e heifeehe i "D eheeed 11 *fl e channels prbvided'by" the "channel portions '24 a'n d"'25' of each bracket ar' weode'ri risers 31', and r ts '32 or O he it b e ee i fi e "devis s, f

tend tli'rough' the bodyfpertiens 'of'.1;he channel irons 19 and zoiepeinng's asa the sides "of 'the channels 24, and'thrmig ht fiS S to s ers'in' thechan'nels'f fit'ri" as metal,

thee asides," and thus the strips 34 'and' '5 m y ext nd pw r ly ne the side e ges. t th '3 in heeee h ht h ewith R et su arse; ext di e e m si the strip 5,

ev n s 3.1 in n k e e l efth h 'fih l' 25, the i rs 3:1,- eh' i p3 h hth r' sid W ls t e hehhe l' hi e en t e s s is 36 'ee i' t S zu th me side s truction'is one" e v H mclu therein, w provide ity,

. i t nefie he h ih the b dy 55 1 1 1" 9 nd w 'ei'ehq' it 1 1 19 l iemeht Whi l ii xc s l el as such an arrangement of thedevice tends provided for the rear wheels of the vehicle, and this is done by omitting one of the cross members, and the sills 28 are bent to extend upwardly at points adjacent each of the cross members adjacent to the omitted cross member, and the portions of the sill intermediate these upwardly extending portions are bent to extend Lhorizontally.

This arrangement provides a wheel "housing 39 on'each side of the body, and thewheels on the vehicle'embodying the chassis extend-into this wheel housing, when the body is mounted on a chassis. In this manner I am enabled to use a body which will extend beyond the rear wheels of thewehicle, and jam therefore enabled to increase the length of the body. Risers 31 are provided iii alignment with the portion at which the cross member is omitted and the lower end of these risers abut the horizontally extending portions of the sills 28 intermediate the upwardly extending portions thereof. Instead of brackets hreekets e e y ih ieei e W40; w re er yie e i the lower ee t le n d use which braelgets includeplat portions 41 that are ciiepeees .helew he ills 2 h e k' e' i acm en e peeiq e uheiah iel s miother distdrti'onthereof. A igle irons 45 extend lOO betweenthe next to thelastandhthe last of the risers 31 on both sides ofthebody andare riveted to the side plates ,of these risers, said angle irons 45 being arranged in horizontal alignment with the angle irons 43 and 44. ,On all but the rearwardmost of mens s 31 alongv the sides ofthe hed d a the uppe nd h, pi ehejt' such as 46 ...(Eig. l1). The ackets 46inclu'de vertically"extendingj channel portions 47 which he diep' ee etween h j lat sseeh 3 an theside pl'atesand channels j l'] are secured b r tfii-wh e l s thre hi he l er to bring about interconnection. thereof. O'n the sides oi. the channels 4.7., adjacent the upper be iieh h reo u i r h t re k fi and d p sed t 'P'eh 1h Op i Q i IiS heeel i= n 4 Bea e s i e of ee 5' h v nd n ieh h re i ex nde nt hpq e. 9

thesechannels'on adjacent risers, andthe' end pert onsofthe'beams .50 are retain'ed'in the chane er newz'e e he su tab e se uring devices. The beams 50 extend between the varieus risers dl and are parallel to/and spaced from, the'angleirons 43 and'4 4f Intermediate the angle irons andthe" beams and secured to the se Plat Finh eere ieh r ,ekei ,v suche's illustratedin Rig. {9 and generally indica'tedby 52. These braclgets include flat plates 53 and extendingbutwardly' therefrom are channels 54, and

disposed to extend into the channels and arranged with opposite ends connected in channels' on adjacent risers, are woode ir beams efal wooden beamsfiaremetaineddn the'chan els 54- 6 er i provide roof beams.

connected to the risers and the side plates there- 'of by rivets, such as' 57 (Fig. 8), it being understood that-the brackets 52 0n opposite sides of the risers 31 are aligned with each other. On the brackets 46 are plates 58 and 59 which are aligned with the'side walls of the channel 47 but which extend in'a direction at right angles thereto, and these plates are aligned with the channels 48 and 49. The ends of beams 69 are disposed between plates 58 and 59 on opposite sides of the body, and rivets, such as 61 extend through the plates 58 and 59 and the ends of the beams 60 to secure said beams in position. Since the beams 60 extend transversely of the body, these beams may be used as supports for the ceiling of. a compartment or compartments to be provided in the body. The last of .the risers 31 on the sides of the body and the risers 3]. at the rear of the body are interconnected by corner brackets, generally indicated by 62. and illustrated in Fig. 10. The brackets 62 include channels 63 and 64, similar to the channels47, and these channels are arranged at right angles to each other. As the channels 63 receive the upper ends of the last of the risers on each side of the body, while the channels 64 receive the upper ends of the risers 31 arranged at the rear; of the body; it is necessary that the brackets '62' be oppositely formed for opposite corners of the body, the bracket 62, illustrated in Fig. 10, being intended for use at the upper left hand corner of the body, as viewed in Fig. 2. Plates,.similar to the plates 58 and 59, are provided in alignment with the channels 63 and 64, and such plates, on opposite sides, of the body support a beam 60. Channels 65 and 66 are provided on the bracket 62, and these channels are substantially similar to the channels 48 and 49, and an arcuate channel 67 extends between the channels 63, and 64 in alignment with the chan nels 65 and 66-to provide a reenforcement for the channels 63 and 64, and also to provide a channel, inv which an arcuate strip of wood may be arranged to which the outside wall panels, to be described hereinafter, may be secured. The channels 47 and 64 include as extensions thereof channels 68 and 69, respectively, and these channels.68.and 69 are aligned with the channels 47 and 64 but are joined thereto by rounded portions so that the channels 68 and 69 extend substantially at right angles to the channels 47 and 64. Opposite ends of beams '70 (Fig. 3) are disposed in the channels 68 and 69. and the beams 70 are arcuated longitudinally of their length and 4 Short stub beams extend between the beams 70 at right angles thereto and at spaced intervals and provide reenforcements. Boththe beams 70 and 71 are preferably made from wood to provide yieldability. The ends of the beams 70 are secured in position by rivets 72 (Fig. 7) a The forwardmost of -the risers 31 have channel irons 19 arranged on the rearwardly disposed faces thereof, but. on the front face the angle strip 20 is supplanted by L-shaped strips 73 and 74, which have the stem portions thereof disposed on the sides of the risers, while the foot portions thereof are arranged in juxtaposition and received therebetween are sill plates 75. Below the sill plates 75 are beams 76, and at the corners of the body, risers, such as 77, are secured to the beams 76. The sill plates 75, beams 76, risers 77 and forwardmost of the risers 81 in cooperation with beams 50, similar to the beams 50, define the drivers compartment, the forward ends of the beams 50' being secured to the upper ends of the risers 77 and being reenforced by brackets 78. Panels, such as 79, one of which may be arranged to be a door, close opposite sides of the drivers compartment, and the forward end is closed in the usual manner; that is, by a dashboard and a windshield (not shown). The foregoing is the manner in which one form of skeleton frame for my improved body may be formed. By referring to Fig. 2, it may be seen that the risers 31 at the rear of the body, are

spaced apart in a relatively great amount, and this is to permit the mounting of door members thereon of approved construction, which will afford access into one compartment provided in the skeleton frame, in a manner to be described hereinafter. A body constructed in the above described manner may include, as in the presentv instance, three compartments, the forwardmost of which is the drivers compartment, the intermediate of which is a 'compartmenthaving insulated Walls, while the rearwardmost is a compartment closed only by the ordinary panels provided on bodies of the character to which my invention appertains, and the doors heretofore described as being arranged at the rear of the body afford access into this last compartment. The outer wall of mybody may be madeof wood, suitable metal, or afabric such as canvas, as may be desired, and it may be made in panels or it may be made in one piece as desired. In the disclosed embodiment, panels are used and the panels on the sides of the body are retained in position by being suitably secured to furring strips, such as 80, which are arranged to extend horizontally, at spaced intervals, over the outer faces of the risers 31, said furring strips being secured to said risers. The side, panelssecured to the side strips are indicated by 81 and 82, and a suitable roof 83 is secured tothe beams 70 and 71 in an approved manner. An insulated compartment may be provided in a body of the above described construction or, if desired, the entire body, except the drivers compartment, may be arranged to include insulated walls so that the compartment defined by the insulated walls may be refrigerated for purposes well understood. A body constructed in this latter manner is disclosed in Figs. 13 to 18, inclusive, and by referring thereto it may be seen' that this body includes and is mounted on a supporting platform which may be formed inthe manner heretofore described; that is, channel irons 19 and 20 are arranged to extend transversely of the body and have wooden beams 21 arranged therebetween. However, in this in stance, brackets 84 are used, in placeof the brackets 22, at the ends of the beams 21'betwe'en the channel irons 19 and 20. A typical bracket 84 is illustrated in detail in Fig. 16, and by'referring thereto it may be seen that this bracket includes horizontally disposed oppositely extending wings 85 and 86 having a vertical channel 87 intermediate thereof and depending therebe- I low, said wings and channel being unitary. Unitary with thechannel 87 and extending upward- 1y inalignment therewith is a channel 88, the sides of which are reduced as indicated at 89 and 90, in the same manner as that in which the reduced sides 26 and 27 .are provided on. the

site sides of the bracket, and these L-shaped por- 1 tions correspond to plate 23. The manner in hi Fin b ke s 84 ar n tall s ust ated iii-Fig. 15;, and by referring thereto it they be seen that the channel portion 37 thereof is dis- D the ed Of he'b 'e 2. a d b t een thebodies of the channel irons 19 and 2d and that the reduced lower end portion of a riser'3l isr nou'nted in this channel. Rivetsfs ieh as 93, ext rid through the'body' f the'channel irons and through openings in theside's of the ehannel 87 andthrough'theriser31to secure said riser in position. A' sill 94, si nilar to the, s i1l'28, is retained between the upper surface of the upper flanges of he channel irons 19' and 20 andthe lovver surfaces of the wings and 86. Beams extend between brackets 84 orladjacentrise'rs 31 above the sills 94. Sidestri-ps 9e and 97, substaht'ially' similar'to the sidefstrips 34 and 35, are secured to the sides of the riser 31, and these side strips include right angular extending foot portions 9'7 a d'9 8, that are disposed on the upper surfaces of thebearns 951' 'Rivets, such as 99', efiendthrbugh' the foot'portions 97 and 98, b'eain 9,5, and 'sill'94 to secure the foot portions in'position on the beam, and rivets, such asIOO, extend through the side plates 95 and96 and openings 'in the side walls of the channel 88, and the riser 31. The foregoing arrangementis provided at the lovver end of eaeh oi the risers 31 along the sides of the body, and it is, therefore, nia'iiifejst that a sturdy yet somewhat ,yieldable connection is provided. Risers 31, "are provided atthe rear end oi the body, "similar to the risers 31 provided at the'rear end of the body in the disclosure depiet'ed inFigQ 2, and a door structo be described more fully hereinafter, is providedbetween these risers. Cross braces ex: te i'd between the risers and are connected thereto 'y bra'elgets 52, in'the rnanner previously 'de seribed, and corner'bra'ckets, such as '46 and '62, are" provided at the upper 'endsofithefriser's to ie is se t ri of the st uc r a d to P i le a s ne io e we; at h d F ri'ng stripslql are mounted on the outer faces of therisers 31 and outer side walls 102 andiofs are secured to these furr'in'g strips. Aro'of 104 is "secured to 'beains 105 and 1 06, similarto the beamslo and 71. To insulate the body, asuitab insulatihg'material'is arranged invv'ardly v'o f s wall an d W l d b lov he. met. while any desired type of insulation may be ided re o m lovk okfand th erred form of usage of this material I ar it n bl k s n h( rm of sack l de ing joined layers of "a suitable fabric such as, for exarnplefburlap. Kapok'serves best as an insulator when'it is arrangedina fluffy conjt qr' ibu h n eq r dby e a t r s ic ofthe structure kapok 'may be compressed ap} bre 'ia h a d n e p e'o th is ha a. two.- "1 blanket of lgapek may be compressed to be biit'br -ciuarter rail inch in tnic ness'but pref era blythis eomp're'ssion of the blanket is used onlj'where nee'essaryl" By reason of the, soit fluffy nature of the Igapok blanket, it is neces: sate that it be suitably supported at frequent intervals to prevent saggingthereof and to obv'i ate the tendeney of the material to collect along the lower edge of the blanket In the embodiment of the invention illustrated in Figs. 13 to 18, inclusive, kapok is used as the insulating, material and blankets thereo f are arranged ..in-,;,

1 is 59 QE e Po n hQ QQ W ll P13 oyerthe' inner'sides of the risers, and itis necessary that the blanket be flattened at these portions, for vertical furring strips 107 are a1:- en i n ard y o the inner fa of th r se s 1 n are itab o n t e et a by nailin lihus, as best illustrat d in Fig.17, the ablanlget 108 will be compressed in'the spacefibetween the risers 31 and vertical furring strips 07.-- 'In ore der that the blanket Will-be co npressed'in as small an amount as possible, the-faces ofthe furring strips 107 disposedtovvard the risers'31 are recessed as' indicated at 109; In the face of the vertical extending furringstrips iO T, pe posite the face having thereoesses' 109 therein, pockets 110 are provided inflwhich horizontally extending furring strips 111 are arranged; and said furr'ing strips 111 extend between the variou'sfurr'ing strips 10' 7.' Secured tothese'ture ring strips 111 are sheets of metal 112vvhieh provide a lining for the compartment defined ithin the body.

- Disposed above the cross members, so as to provide a flat surface on the platform; is a plate 113 whieh is suitably secured to "the cross members, and arranged above the plate are a series of strips 114 to which furring strips 115 are secured, and these furring strips 115 extend longitudinally of 'the bpdy If desired, additional furring strips 116 maybe provided that may be extended transversel y of the body. 'In the enie bodiment of the invention, 111, strated in Figs, "13 to 18'; inclusiveftvvo blankets'of insulating inatee rial -r'na'y be provided, and when two such blankets are used one ofthe nkets wn bedispgsed to rest on the strips .114 below the furring' strips 115 'vvhilelthe other of the blankets will be directedabove the 'furring strips 115 Disposed above and aligned with the furring strips .115 are furring strips 117, and turring strips are similarly arranged above the tuning strips 116. andthe last-narned'blanket is directed between the furrin'g strips 115 and'116 andll'? and 113, The ends of the furring strips 117 are conneeted w'su r ort n s ri s 1 ar n e at pos te 12o floor boards12 l pref rably of these o r boaids d th 'lfl r 9 n? sets- 12;

It has been pointed out that it is often desirableto transport meat andfsimilar' perishable produce in bodies of thecharacter to which this invention appertains, and suoh 'p'roducecan best be an d by, e ng u m a le $1 9- ports. However, the eight of such produce is often re ativ y hi h an i here o e; n cessary that a sturdy construetion be provided to support such produce. I, therefore, provide suitble. p nin n t ate 21 ali nme t w e er 3 an the end q tionf l 9f strips 122, and 123 are extended through these openings an a nn cte t the la 511i an 59 Id to the'risers 31, 'adjacent the upper ends of s d risers, and the strips are also secured to theuppr ends of furring strips 192. Disposed labovethe strips 122 and'123'and extending between the furring strips 102 are Wooden beams 124. suitable intervals along the strips 122 and 1 213, oppositely extending alig'ned bracket 124 and 125 arelmglmtedhwhich are secured in position said rods extending between aligned brackets on juxtaposed beams, and appreciable weight may compartment thus defined, a very eificient arrangement results, and the device may, therefore, be very effectively refrigerated;

In order to afford access into the compartmentv a suitable door structure is provided, and this door structure includes vertical posts 128 between which suitable horizontally disposed rails are extended, which provide a frame, and a metal enclosure .129 is provided about the frame, and the metal enclosure is filled with kapok or other suitable insulating material. A stepped arrangement is provided around the edges of the doors, which effectively seals the door opening when the doors are in closing position, which manifestly will increase the efficiency of the device.

In the embodiment of the invention, as best illustrated in Fig. 2, an insulated compartment is provided which is arranged in the intermediate portion of the body, as above described. This compartment is disposed between certain of the risers 31, and in the present instance is arranged between three risers on each side of the device. Inwardly of the intermediate risers 31, furring strips 130 are provided, and along the front and rear walls are risers 132, similar to the risers 31, and furring strips 130 are arranged inwardly of the risers 132. Suitable metal plates 133 are arranged on the furring strips 132, and the edges are secured to the risers 31 at the corners of the compartment, and these metal plates 00- operate with the paneling on the outer face of the body to define a compartment, and arranged inwardly of the outer walls of this compartment is a suitable insulation, such as kapok, which is supported in the manner previously described. The inner walls of the compartments are defined by suitable metal plates, joined in an approved manner, and connected to the furring strips 130. A frame comprising rails 134 is provided around the body adjacent the corners thereof. A suitable door structure 135 is provided which affords access into the interior of the compartment thus defined.

It is manifest from the foregoing description that I have provided a body construction which may be readily adapted for mounting on the chassis of an automotive truck, and that I have provided a body construction which is adaptable for use on chassis of different constructions. Since I have provided a platform as a part of my improved body construction, and as it is this platform that may be secured to the chassis, it is manifest that the entire body construction may be built as a unit. Further, since I have provided a body construction in which metal strips are combined with wooden beams, it is manifest that I have provided a construction which is sturdy, yet not so excessively rigid as to cause shearing of securing bolts and the like. Moreover, by combining wooden beams with metal strips I am enabled to use a relatively light metal, such as aluminum, which will appreciably reduce the 1 weight of the body and by reducing the weight of the body, it will be possible to carry a greater pay load on the truck than is possible in trucks.

which have body construction including a relatively heavy metal, for it is obvious that it is immaterial whether or not the weight impressed on the truck is that of a body construction or one of a pay load, as only a definite amount of weightcan be.loaded. on the truck. a The marked.

advantage of using a sturdy bodyof light construction is, therefore, apparent. Further, my body construction is effectively reenforced and,

therefore, distortion and weaving thereof is substantially eliminated.

In the foregoing description I have set forth two selected embodiments of my invention, but it is to be understood that this device might be constructed in other ways without departing from the purview of the invention and I, therefore,

wish to'avail myself of all variations and modifications falling within the scope of the following claims.

.Iclaim: r

1. In a body construction which has parallel flat reenforcing plates, and a riser disposed between said reenforcing plates, the combination therewith of a bracket for securing said reenforcing plates and riser in position and including side plates and a web connecting said side plates, said side plates and web providing a channel adapted to receive the riser, attaching members extending outwardly from the side plates intermediate the ends thereof, said side plates having openings therein, and securing devices inserted through the openings in said side plates and openings in the reenforcing plates and riser to secure the reenforcing plates to the side plates of the bracket and to secure the riser in the channel.

2. In, a body construction which has parallel fiat plates, and a riser disposed between said plates, the combination therewith of a bracket for securing said plates and riser in position and including a channel adapted to receive the riser, a plate extending from the closed sides of said channel intermediate the ends thereof, and integral pads on the sides of said channel adjacent said plate and adapted to reenforce said channel adjacent said plate, said channel having openings in the sides thereof adapted to receive securing devices for attaching said plates to the sides of the channel of the bracket and for securing said riser in said channel.

3. In a body construction which has parallel flat plates, and a riser disposed between said plates, the combination therewith of a bracket for securing said plates and riser in position and including a channel adapted to receive the riser, said channel having integral pads on the sides and intermediate the ends thereof, and attaching devices integral with the bracket and extending outwardly from the pads on the sides of the channel, said pads strengthening said bracket at the places whereat said attaching devices are joined therewith, and said channel having openings in the sides thereof adapted toreceive securing devices for attaching the plates to the sides of the channel of the bracket and for securing said riser in said channel.

4. In a body construction which has parallel flat plates, and a riser disposed between said plates, the combination therewith of a bracket for securing said plates and riser in position and including a channel adapted to receive the riser, said channel having a straight portion wherein said riser is arranged and including a portion extending at an angle to said straight portion,

taching the plates to the sides of the channel of the bracket and for securing said riser in said channel.

5.- In a body construction which has a riser and. a pair of beams arranged one above the other and extending at an angle tothe riser,- the combination therewith of a bracket for Se"- cu-ring said riser and beams in position and in cluding a channel having a straight portion adapted to receive the riser and a portion adapted'to receive the upper beam, said bracket having the web of said channel thickened at the juncture of the portions of said channel to effectively reenforce the portionto receive the upper beam, and means on the bracket to receive the end ofthe lower beam, said channel having openings in the sides of the straight portion thereof adapt ed to receive fastening devices for securing the riser in the straight portion of said channel.

6. A bracket for use in a body construction and including channels embodying parallel portions and other portions extending at angles to the parallel portions and toward each other, the end of one of said angularly extending portions merg-' ing into the side of the other of the angularly' 

